He was back
by CloeyMarie
Summary: For a second there was hope and all was well. Then he spoke. Laying shattered on the floor among the wood splinters was her hope for her past dreams and she couldn't bring herself to care.
1. Of loving and loathing

**H**e was back. He was back and she just couldn't seem to make herself care. Sure for a second the twelve year old had resurfaced and for one glorious moment all was good. He was back, the sun was shining, and he was back. Like in her twelve year old fantasies he would sweep her off her feet onto a magnificent stallion and then they would ride off into the sunset and everything would be _perfect_.

This fantasy lasted a whole two seconds before he looked her right in the eye as he lay on the hospital bed bandages covering his lean frame and said something that shattered what small amount of feelings she still had for the dark avenger, "Still weak I see."

Her insides froze, her eyes widened marginally then turned into slits, the clipboard that had monitored his progress was then little more then splinters on the floor and in her hands; all in all she was not happy. Taking a deep shuddering breathe she forced the words out clipped and cold barely able to be considered civil but she didn't care, "I see you've woken up Uchiha-san."

That was the end of that conversation as she focused on checking the progress on his recovery much rougher then she would be on anyone else but then this wasn't everyone else so she didn't feel bad for giving him _special _treatment.

"Aren't you going to welcome me back, Sakura?" Sasuke asked tinted with sarcasm and maybe something more.

Standing up rigidly as memories of begging him to stay, humiliating herself for him, waking up on a cold stone bench courtesy of him, of crying almost constantly for the next week and for months afterwards _every_ night all in his name flashed past her eyes and she was proud that she didn't kill the cocky bastard right then.

"The Sasuke that I knew and loved died the night he left, he would never have become what he despised just to kill Itachi, I mourned for the loss of Sasuke and if you were him, well… then I would have welcomed you home. Goodbye Uchiha-san." Maybe the twelve year old wasn't quite gone yet as a single tear managed to pierce through the twenty three year olds iron clad defenses and trickle pointlessly down her cheek to splatter on the ground moments later as Sakura swiped the bothersome reminder of her 'weakness' away leaving thin scratches on her face from the clipboard splinters that had imbedded themselves in her hand.

Turning on her heel eager to be away from the painful reminder of the past she didn't notice his very soul cringe at the verbal assault. But then again, she couldn't bring herself to care either way.

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Random blurb that I found in my foulder and decided to share with the rest of you. Hope it's not to terrible. Review please. -Cloey Marie- 


	2. Full circle

The pain was like a dull humming in the back of his mind, as if a fly had decided his skull was the best spot to be. This fly was also slamming into his head repeatedly with a single-mindedness which almost paralleled his own; this fly was his headache that was trying to rip itself from his head.

He had only been awake for five minutes and he was ready to leave, in no way was he looking forward to seeing everyone again. Sure there were a few people he wouldn't _mind _seeing, three. Three people would he maybe, possibly take a small amount of pleasure in their visitations. The other couple hundred that would no doubt come would be much less welcome and equally appreciated.

These three tolerable people were his team, his make-shift family, and his friends. How would they have changed? He entertained himself with the thoughts of a more mature Naruto before casting it aside. If there was one thing that would never change it was Naruto. Kakashi, the eternal enigma. Perhaps Naruto and Sakura had been able to finally get him to remove that thrice damned mask. Sakura…was in his room.

The first thing he noticed was that she was in a nurse's outfit, could she be his nurse? This observation was quickly followed by her hair tied up in a messy bun, something she never did in her youth. It looked…nice. The third and possibly most important thing he noticed was her eyes.

They quivered with emotion, just as they did at age twelve, doe eyes. She was the same emotional girl she had been and for some reason that relieved him. "Still weak I see." So many things underlayed that single sentence, that one phrase that he was surprised it didn't explode raining down all the unsaid things on the distance between them.

It was only a moment before her eyes hardened and the old Sakura was lost to him, only a brief instant that he could see the hurt in her eyes, the pain that suffocated him. Then it was gone along with her. What stood in her place was no longer Sakura but a doll with Sakura's face painted on. It lacked the emotion; it failed to capture the soul of Sakura, her passions. "I see you've woken up Uchiha-san." Her words burned him with how cold they sounded coming from her.

He could tell she was intent on getting this done and over with quickly, even at the cost of his comfort or perhaps that was an added bonus for her. However he wouldn't, couldn't let her go just like that. There were too many things that needed to be said and even one who hated conversations as much as he was willing to initiate this one.

"Aren't you going to welcome me back, Sakura?" Another sentence that housed so many things, so very much to be answered. Against his will he waited almost impatiently for her to respond in kind, for her to go back to how she was, to throw her arms open and envelop him in a hug that she had loved to give, and perhaps to give him back his friend/family member/teammate.

"The Sasuke that I knew and loved died the night he left, he would never have become what he despised just to kill Itachi, I mourned for the loss of Sasuke and if you were him, well… then I would have welcomed you home. Goodbye Uchiha-san." Sakura delivered her speech coldly before turning on her heel leaving him alone to nurse his losses himself.

It was then that Sasuke realized that time wasn't just a cruel mistress, she was cold hearted bitch. He recognized that it had been silly to expect that his three would have stayed the same, accepted him back, hell just to care but…he did. It was ironic in a sense, Sakura despised him for becoming like Itachi when she had become just like him, the Sasuke of the past. A morbid laugh forced its way up his throat to bubble out of his mouth, things certainly came full circle.

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I was reading old reviews and I noticed that everyone wanted a chapter from Sasuke's POV so here it is five months later. Reviews are appreciated more than I can say. -Cloey Marie- 


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